A lion amongst wolves
by Wolfinshipclothing
Summary: Steven Diamond have but one wish: to be treated like an equal by his fellow Diamonds. Spinel has but one wish: to see Steven happy. Those two things, it seems, are mutually exclusive. But Spinel won't leave her Diamond's side, no matter how deep that road goes.(Stevnel)(Diamond!Steven AU)


**HOLY SHEESH, i swear to God, i did not expected this fic to be this long.**

**Originally i wanted to make this for Stevnel month (the AU day), but i didnt get it in time... BUT better late than never.**

**This fic is my take on the whole Diamond!Steven thing... I put my own ideas about him and about the Empire. The protagonist, however, is Spinel, so be ready for that.**

**With that said, this fic is mostly harmless; that is there is not anything too sexual or violent. There is, however, several butt jokes and cursing.**

**Proceed with caution.**

* * *

"_The lion cannot protect himself from traps, and the fox cannot defend himself from wolves. One must therefore be a fox to recognize traps, and a lion to frighten wolves."_  
**― Niccolò Machiavelli, **"The Prince"

* * *

"Look if only you would let me explain-"

BAM!

Yellow Diamond's fist hit the sidearm of her throne, breaking the console and sending sparks flying everywhere.

Spinel uncovered her hears, and saw Steven doing the same. His gaze was fixated on the marble floor; his hands turned into fist, grabbing the edge of his dress-robe so hard the stitches would surely unfasten.

There were tears of fury on his eyes; enough to break Spinel's heart.

Yellow signed at the sight of what she had done to her beloved throne. "You have explained yourself enough already, _Pink_."

She said that last word in _such_ a way Steven nostrils widened. He hated that name, **hated** it. And by extension, so did Spinel.

"I still can't believe it," proceeded Yellow, "I gave you one simple order: To invade the rebel base and destroy it, scattering those malcontents like the bugs they are, ready to be splattered under my boot."

"Yes, but-"

Yellow raised a finger, shutting Steven for good. "And just when I think you have it under control, when I believe you are finally growing up as a Diamond, you… What was the word you used?"

Steven gulped. "I… blew it."

"Ah, yes, you 'blew it'. If by that you mean you turned a simple mission into a _disaster_. Two quartz platoons were captured —possibly shattered already— and one was severely damaged. Not to mention you alerted the rebels of our presence in the sector and they are no doubt moving their base to a remote location it would take us weeks to find!"

Yellow took a long breath. "So _yes_, I would say that you 'blew it'"

The shadow of Yellow's form felt on both of them; she was leaning so far in her throne Spinel thought she would fall over —_heh, that would suit her alright_. Instead, she sat back against her throne and put her attention on the holographic pad, no doubt going over the pictures of the failed attack once again.

Steven said nothing as he waited for the reprimand to continue or to be dismissed, whichever happened first. He looked so composed now and yet so fragile. Spinel wanted to touch him; if she could stretch her arm a bit and hold his hand…

She reeled her arm back in place. _No, bad time_. She had to be a good gem and be still, even if it killed her.

Her gaze traveled across the room. Next to Yellow's throne, in a direct line from Spinel's position, was Yellow Pearl. She was slim and tall, standing in a perfect pose, immovable by anything happening in that room; a direct counterpart to Spinel. The clear lines on her form and dress spoke of elegance and an unfazed expression on her face spoke of _control_. She crossed looks with Spinel and scoffed, then went back to her unamused self.

A fire burned inside Spinel's chest. She couldn't care less what that lemon-colored rock thought of her, but she was _rabid_ that she couldn't be…

_Better. More_.

There was someone else in the room. A Jasper general —the one who directed the assault— was standing like a pillar at the left of the room. She and her elite squad had survived the attack, but the amethysts she commanded were captured. She looked as tense as Steven.

"Alright," Yellow made a clapping hand motion and the holographic pad banished. "One more time, Pink. What happened?"

"A miscommunication."

"Oh, I have no doubt of that."

"It's true!" Steven shouted as he stepped forward, dropping all semblance of formality. "Everything was going alright! The plan was all set up. The platoons were supposed to attack south, striking them from behind, where they were exposed. But then this…" he pointed at the Jasper, "this fool here went ALL around the mountain and attacked north, walking directly into their turret's line of fire! I mean, w-who does that?!"

"A gem following her Diamond's orders."

"OH, so it's MY fault that she can distinguish north and south?"

Yellow tapped the sidearm of her throne —the one still in one piece, that is. "General?"

The Jasper made a salute.

"What orders did you receive? And do not. Lie. To me."

The Jasper breathed in and out and finally spoke: "Luminous One, we were ordered to attack south."

Steven buffed. "See? There you have-"

"But…" the Jasper said, "before the assault could begin, we received a new order to attack north."

"BULLSHIT!"

"Quiet, Pink!" yelled Yellow. Steven changed his fighting stance to a more calming posture.

Not content with what was happening, the Jasper spoke again. "My Diamond, if I might take responsibility-"

"You will _not_ do such a thing," said Yellow, "Your performance is not on the table. Yet."

The Jasper nodded and returned to her inert pose.

"Now, one of you ruined this operation, and until I figure out which one, you are both under investigation. This means that you…" she pointed at the Jasper, "are temporally relieved from your status as General and will be dispatched to guard duty. Wait for your next assignment at the barrack 78. You are dismissed."

Without any complain or discussion, the Jasper saluted Yellow, then she saluted Pink, and finally she left the room with hardly a word.

_Sole-licker,_ thought Spinel.

"As for you…" said Yellow, meaning Steven. "You are grounded. Go to your room."

"What?" he yelped, "F-for how long? When I am going back to the front?"

Yellow went through a stage of shook before entering a phase of roaring laughter.

"You-you really think I am going to let you go back to _Vergonha 7_?" said Yellow as the laugh dried out, "How much more damage do you want to cause?"

"But-"

"BE QUIET!" yelled Yellow, her eyes throwing thunder and lightning all around. "It's always the same with you. Every day you pester me and Blue for a chance to 'prove yourself'. And when we are not here, you pester us with your incessant calls. And when I finally gave in —at Blue's insistence—, what do you do? You _blew_ it, and now I have to fix your mess, as usual."

She shook her head in disbelief. "No, you are not fit to be a Diamond yet. You will go to your room and be a good gem until I say otherwise. You are dismissed, Pink."

The air turned dense and suffocating as if, should you try to walk away; you would find yourself trapped in honey. Spinel knew what this sudden surge of energy meant, so she took a step back.

CRACK!

"**You can't be serious!**" said Steven, as the wall of smoke started to dissipate.

There was thunder in his voice and fire in his eyes; a powerful whirlwind danced around him; his aura, now wholly visible. The ground under him had cracked under his sheer power alone.

His hue was pink, head to toe.

"**You always do this, you underestimate me!"** he spoke, sending chills down everyone's spines, except Yellow, "**If it were Blue who messed up, you wouldn't care, but it's me so, oh, the universe has to stop what they are doing to make fun out of me!**"

Steven stomped his foot, breaking the already destroyed yellow marble even more.

"**I'm sick and tired of being your laughingstock. I am a Diamond too, you know!**"

"Then why don't you act like one instead of whining like an overpowered petulant CHILD!"

Yellow's voice echoed through the room, even with all the noise coming from Steven's aura.

"Be gone now and we will leave it at this. And don't even think about bothering Blue with this," Yellow sighed; the thunders in her eyes faded. "You have broken her heart enough with your last tantrum. Don't hurt her anymore."

The air changed as Steven's aura slowly dissipated. His face was painted with an emotion that Spinel knew all too well. Shame.

He took several calming breaths as his color went back to normal.

"Fine," he made a hand gesture for Spinel to step closer, "then I will have to take this to the Head Diamond herself. Come on, Spinel. We are off to see White."

"But-"

A thunderbolt exploded at their feet, halting their movement.

"**You will NOT do such a thing!**" Yellow's voice was so powerful Spinel felt the electricity running through her gem and form. "You will go back to your room and wait. I'll have a talk with Blue and once I am done, WE are going to have a very serious discussion about your behavior. Have I made myself clear?"

It wasn't a question, but an order. A _challenge_ even. Now, Spinel was sure Steven could take Yellow any day of the week; Steven himself, however, had his doubts. And so, he gave Yellow an annoyed glance and said:

"Let's go, Spinel."

He stormed out of the door before Spinel could protest. She walked close behind, following the burning footstep he left on the floor.

They went straight to Steven's palace, walking through a bridge you could see most of Homeworld from. When White's palace came into view, Steven gave it a glance and hurried up.

Spinel didn't even look at it.

* * *

They reached Steven's chambers soon enough. Two Carnelians guards, standing at each side of the door, greeted them at once.

'Guards' in this case meant 'spies assigned by Yellow to make sure Steven was a Good Diamond and didn't do anything too stupid'. They weren't too great at their job, by the way.

Spinel had named them Naggy and Dummy; because one liked to nag and the other was just plain dumb.

"Greetings, my Diamond," said Naggy as they came by.

"Trust the meeting with Yellow went well?" said Dummy, like an idiot.

Steven _hissed_ at her, his eyes like thunderbolts, and went into his room. Spinel following him, but not before making a 'cut yer throat' gesture to Dummy.

The door closed, leaving the two Carnelians alone.

"Ya know, one of these days, he's gonna get tired of your trash and it's gonna be over for you, you stupid rock."

Dummy shrugged. "What is he gonna do? Shatter me? He wouldn't dare invoking Yellow Diamond's wrath. Also, they would just put another soldier as guard, and that's the last thing he wants."

Naggy shook her head. "I am not worried about him coming for your butt. I am worried about his 'Lieutenant' doing so."

There was a long silence, interrupted only by the tapping of Dummy's feet.

"Point taken," she said.

* * *

As soon as the door closed, Steven exploded.

"Ugh, that was _so_ fucking typical!"

Spinel stood by the door as Steven paced around the room. It was best to keep her distance when he was like that.

"Pff, I know right? It's like-"

"I mean, Yellow is SO full of double standards," Steven said as if no one else has spoken. "She is always babbling about how a Diamond has to be perfect and set an example for all of Gemkind and yadda, yadda, yadda… But when it comes to _me_ it seems I can't do anything right."

"Well I-"

"And Blue! _Oh_, don't get me started on Blue. She is always so set on me not having a colony because then I would go away 'and what would I do if something happens to you'" he laughed dryly. "Like, what does she think will happen? I'll get shattered?"

Spinel bit her lip. "Well… that has been known to happen to ya."

"That was THEN!" Steven turned to face her. He looked like a rabid animal. "This is now, Spinel! Blue _knows_ that Yellow is unfair to me but she lets her be, because it would mean I won't go away, and it seems they are all conspiring to ruin. My. **Life**!"

Steven made a sudden turn and his fist impacted against one the wall. He stood there for a moment, in awe of the fist-shaped mark on the neo-concrete structure. With a swift motion he hit the wall, over and over again, making the whole room —and probably the whole Palace— shook.

Spinel held her hands together over her chest, trying not to tremble too much. It would be over soon. Very soon. She just had to wait, and she was awfully good at that.

A small window opened on the wall, right next to her head. A few pebbles, the tiny pets and constructors of Pink Diamond —and now of Steven—, stuck their heads out of the opening. They looked at the scene and then looked at Spinel, questioning.

_Not now_ she muttered.

The pebbles took the hint and went back inside the wall, closing the window behind them.

A few minutes later, the beating stopped. Steven was wheezing and sweating madly. The wall which has received all his anger was still standing; a testament of the quality of the architecture. It didn't look ready for war, full of cracks as it was.

Now that Steven was 'calmer', Spinel dared to walk to the bed and sit on the edge. Steven took the hint and lay down on the mattress, on the opposite corner.

This position was a familiar one for them. The bed was a special place for the duo; the only constant piece of furniture, for everything else was hidden behind the walls and floor until it was necessary. Spinel loved to sit there and watch Steven work. Or lay over the mattress, on top of his body, watching him sleep and wash away the worries of the day.

Likewise, Spinel has found herself many times turned into a babbling mess, her body tangled like a yarn ball, crying her eyes out. Steven was always there; drawing circles across her back, whispering sweet nothings to her. Making her feel like he was important, useful. Perfect.

That strategy, however, didn't work with a mad Steven. Instead, Spinel stretched her arm and grabbed up the pillow from the bed head.

"Want to scream into this? That always makes ya feel better," she offered, with the best smile she could muster.

And even then, it was a pretty forced one.

Steven picked the pillow and hid his face under. _Stupid Yellow…_ he mumbled simply.

"Mmm, not much energy in that scream of yours, but I'll take it."

With Steven distracted, Spinel extended her arms and worked on Steven's boots, untying the laces and taking the shoes off, setting them aside next to the bed.

"So, uh… wanna talk 'bout what's botherin' ya?" asked Spinel.

"No."

"Cool, alrigh'… Wanna go outside and prank Naggy and Dummy? I got some rotten fruit I've been savin' for a time like this. O-or we could totally sneak in Yellow's Palace to freak out her Pearl. That always lift ya mood!"

"No."

Spinel clenched her teeth.

_Well, at least I know what to get you on your birthday. A lexicon_, she thought.

"Do you… wantmetotickleyouintosubmission!"

In a split of a second Spinel jumped over Steven, fully intended to tickle him until he cried for mercy. And in the other split of a second she was swiftly turned around and pinned against the mattress, with Steven on top, holding her by the wrist.

"No."

Steven's eyes were fixed on hers. The diamonds inside were so beautiful. By reflex, Spinel parted her legs slightly. Steven saw what she was doing and tilted his body forward, his pelvis hitting against hers. He groaned.

"Do you, uhm…" said Spinel, her voice coarse with anticipation. "Do ya want to take yer anger on me?"

A cute red took over Stevens face. He was deep in thought for a moment.

"Not particularly, no."

Spinel's feet hit him square in the chin, sending him butt first against the hard pink marble floor.

"Then what the heck do you want? Cause you are not giving me any clues, mistah enigmatic!"

"I want to be a Diamond, Spinel!" Steven sat on the floor and looked at Spinel from the edge of the bed. "I want to be treated the same as Yellow, Blue and White. I want gems around here to stop acting like I am an annoyance they had to tolerate. I want to be respected! Is that too much to ask?"

Spinel made a raspberry and had a giggle at Steven's red angry face.

"Forget it. You don't understand."

Steven stood up and walked to the centre of the room. He stepped on an odd-colored tile, activating the hidden button. The floor creaked and whined as the wheels under it moved and a big window opened. From it emerged a vanity —made entirely out of pink ceramics— with multiple drawers, a big mirror and a sink. The whole thing occupied a good portion of the room.

So big and tall it was that a staircase emerged with it. Not that Steven needed it. He made a jump and floated gracefully to the top.

Spinel stared in awe as Steven changed clothes. It was always interesting, in a 'scientific-test subject' way…

First, the drawers opened by itself. Or —more precisely— Steven opened them with his mind. His pajamas levitated out of the drawer and stayed suspended in the air. Meanwhile, Steven took out his Pink Diamond's robe and hung it on the clothes valet next to the mirror. Said valet soon disappeared under the floor.

He then took out his black jumpsuit and put it inside one of the drawers, closing it up in the process. Spinel blushed. From her position, Steven was hiding _nothing_ —not that he could care, he never hid anything from her. Finally he took his floating pajamas and wrapped himself in them. The set consisted on an oversized black t-shirt with a white rose on it and a pair of pant with hearts stamped all around.

Spinel smiled. She had designed those for him.

Feeling encouraged, she climbed the stairs up, almost to the top but stopping at the last step, just in case Steven decided he didn't wanted to deal with her now and ordered her to take a hike to the Void.

Instead, she put her attention on the vanity, which double worked as a war table. There were holographic panels and papers all over the place. Tactical maps with battle plans, lists with the numbers of Pink Diamond's surviving quartz soldiers and their assigned posts, detailed images and data on the most successful colonies, a bunch of small figurines resembling gems —from when Steven and Spinel wanted to play a tactical game— and a whole lot of other war paraphernalia was scattered around the desk and mirror.

Spinel's joy dissolved into burning anger when she saw a perfectly rendered picture of a certain blue planet.

_This is what this is all about, isn't it?_ She realized.

She also caught her own miserable face on the large mirror. The phrase 'a shadow of your former self' popped into her head. But honestly? This was more a case of 'a messed up but less stupid version of yourself'.

When Spinel was Pink's… servant, she was a mere sapling; all pink, pretty and stupid. She was made to be Pink's friend and confident, and she did her job well for a while. Until the day when Pink decided that having a colony and impressing the Diamond Authority was more important than Spinel and abandoned her. Except Spinel never got the memo, and for 6000 years waited for her Maker to come back. But she never did.

Instead, a little boy, a sapling of a Diamond, came to her rescue. Steven found the garden and took Spinel with him back to Homeworld. It's been five years since that, but it felt like centuries ago.

These days Spinel's form was very different. She wore a simple but elegant black vest, a small jacket with big spiked pads, short pants and tall spiked boots that squeaked when she walked —she had no idea _why_. The gloves were the only white thing in her otherwise magenta and black outfit.

Steven was done dressing when he caught Spinel's gaze on the mirror.

"What's with that face?" he asked.

"It's my face, what do you want me to do 'bout it?" she said, getting a small chuckle from Steven. "But if ya are so curious, I was just thinkin'."

Now Steven laughed fully. "Oh, for real? White must be about to leave her head!"

"Hehe, it's funny that you think you are funny," Spinel hit Steven's shoulder lightly.

Had any other gem done that, she would have been shattered in pieces so small even bacteria wouldn't find them. But Spinel was not 'any gem'.

She made a step and was now on top of the staircase, next to Steven. She said nothing for a while as he washed his teeth. He picked his toothbrush and opened a sphere with the paste he used. It smelled like mint and aloe. He collected a small amount of it on the brush and dispersed it over his teeth.

_Now that you are speechless, don't mind if I do the talkin'_

"But if you really want to know, I have been ponderin' 'bout this situation. And I wonder —and I'm just thinkin' out loud of course— but… Who cares what the ol' meanies Yellow and Blue think?"

Steven tilted his head to the side, showing his interest has been picked.

"I know what you gonna say, but hear me out for a sec," Spinel took the voice of a soldier giving an important report. "Yellow. She's a _mess_, right? No, don't laugh, I mean it. She is the one that lost the _Vergonha _colony in the first place, isn't she?"

Steven nodded slowly.

"Yea, she did. And then she went to you to fix her mess and called it an 'opportunity to prove yourself'. That's a whole pile of smoking space crap! She is just jelly cause her butt is big and she hasn't had a real fight in eons, while you are one third her age and can beat her up fair and square."

Steven's foamy mouth formed a white covered smile.

"OH, and don't get me started on Blue!" Spinel surrounded Steven with her arm. "She thinks yer just a kid, Stevie. That you can't make your own choices. Well, who has she judged recently, uh? Small-name rebels and off-color gems? We both know she and Yellow are thick as thieves and Blue always discuss state-matters with her. And about White-"

Spinel's arm was left dangling in the air as Steven broke free from her grasp. He spat the foam on the sink.

"It's not about them" he said as he washed his face with a towel. "It's about me Spinel. I know it's degrading and inappropriate, but these… low grade jobs the Diamonds assign me is the easiest way to get a colony," Steven huffed and threw the towel inside a drawer. "If only the gems under my command actually followed my orders... Come on now, don't give me that look. Just think about how much our lives would improve if I had a colony!"

Spinel's hair frizzled, almost breaking free of her ponytails. Steven made a step to get out of the vanity, but her voice stopped him.

"What's so yucky about our lives?"

"What's so- do you actually look around sometimes? I can't leave the room unless Yellow or Blue call me! And if I do, these two rockheads outside have to follow me like a shadow. I am never alone! I am still surprised there are no cameras in here."

Spinel kept her eyes on the floor, but then Steven slid a hand over her face. So soft and warm; she couldn't resist leaning against it.

"Now, imagine if I had a colony! I would be respected, a true Diamond," Steven's eyes seemed lost, his mind wandering into his deepest fantasy. "We'll no longer live in this… Light-forsaken palace-"

"Oh, yer right 'bout that," replied Spinel. "We'll live in a military base on some barren moon. We'll be cramped like a Jasper on a Ruby hole."

"Can't be more cramped than _this._"

Steven opened his arms to the 4x4 meters chamber they have come to call 'home'.

"And that's not all," he said as he reached for something on the table. "How about this?"

The figurine in his hands was small and skillfully made, with long curly hair and a shield in her hand. A Rose Quartz soldier.

"You wanna expand your figurines collection?"

"Yes, I-NO! No, I want _this_, but in _real life_!" he pointed at the other figurines on the vanity. "Quartz soldiers, agates, opals, rubies, carnelians —hopefully ones that are not back-talkers. A real court, for a real Diamond. It's what I deserve, and I'll not settle for less."

He noticed the look Spinel was giving him and scoffed. "I knew you wouldn't get it."

"OH, I totally get it mistah big bad Diamond!" said Spinel as she followed Steven down the stairs. "Ya think having a colony is a whole-lotta fun, uh? You would _looove_ to sit on yer throne, high and mighty, while all the other gems kiss your boots."

"That is not what I say and you know it."

"Oh, really?" Spinel laughed with malice. "'Oh please Mistah Diamond, please notice me. Oh, would you be so kind as clean of your dirt over my form? Oh please tell me I am a good gem while I do nothing but gossip and manipulate and shiv other gems in the back all day! _What a_ _court!_"

A wave of energy hit her. Steven stopped walking, but he didn't dignify to look at her. Instead, he breathed in and resumed his march.

"You don't know what you are talking about."

Steven reached the floor and stepped on the secret button again. Spinel had to make a jump, less she would have been absorbed by the floor alongside the vanity.

"And here we go again, understimatin' me!" she followed Steven across the room, "How do you think Yellow and Blue's courts work like? That's why White doesn't have one; she is da smartest, and the one with the biggest butt."

"What is your obsession with butts today?" Steven threw his hands in the air, "if you want to make me laugh, you are not gonna get it."

Spinel's hand tangled itself around Steven's own, halting his movement. "That's right; you are the one is a joke."

"ME?!" yelled Steven, his pink eyes now piercing Spinel, "What did I do?!"

"Being a fool."

Steven recovered his hand, only to discover they were both empty.

"Give it back," he ordered.

"Give what back?" she said, hiding her hands behind her back.

"Just give it back, and we'll forget about all this."

The laugh that came from Spinel was mean and devoid of any humor. She should stop now, but —as with more things in her life— she found she didn't have self agency.

"Mmm… OH!" Spinel raised her hand, the one with the Rose Quartz figure in it. "You mean this thing that steals your sleep? This is what you want, isn't it? Your little toy army? A court of parasites? A cute little pearl in a pretty pink dress?"

Spinel went rigid as Steven held her by the wrist. He was taller than her, and infinitively stronger. His eyes were pits of fire.

"**Give. It. Back.**"

"Why?!" she cried, her eyes watering with bottled emotions. "You think a colony will make you happy? Having all those gems adoring you? _Why_? Why do you need everyone to love you? Am I not enough?"

The fire in Steven's eye dimmed, but his grip didn't falter.

"I-I always do anything you want. W-what else d-do you need? What do I have to do? Just… tell me…"

Her voice leave her as crying took over. Big, ugly tears felt from her eyes, tracing marks across her face. Carving new scars on her form.

She felt Steven's grip softened as he held her hand. He reached into his pocket and took out a handkerchief, which he used to clean up her face. Spinel melted under his gentle care. She was calmer now, the pain in her gem receding.

_You do love me, don't you?_ She told herself. _You care about me, as much as I care about you._

She expected Steven to hold her in his arms, to pat her head, tell her to forget the whole thing and be back to normal.

Instead, he cleaned her face in silence, folded the hankie back into his pocket, and said:

"You don't get it."

It was like a chisel in Spinel's gem.

Steven gave his back to her. "I'll be in my studio. I just… need to think."

"Can I-"

"NO!" he shouted. Spinel made herself smaller.

Steven stretched his face with his hands.

"Look… You are being very insolent today and I can't deal with you right now. I'll be in my studio. I don't care what you do just… I don't know, go prank someone or fall down the stairs, I don't care. Just don't bother me until I-until YOU are in a better mood. You understand?"

"But I-"

"**That will be all, Lieutenant.**"

Spinel shuddered with rage. She wanted to scream; to stand tall and point a finger in his chest and tell him that she _does not_ deserve to be treated like this —even if sometimes she believed she did.

But she couldn't do that. Instead, she stood tall and made a salute.

"Yes, my Diamond," she said in an empty voice.

Steven stared at her for a full minute and then said: "Good."

He walked to the farthest wall and pushed a button on it. An archway opened and he went inside. Before the arc closed, he turned around to look at her.

_Miserable_, that's how he looked like.

The archway closed with a THUD. Spinel broke the salute. That was a close call. One of these days, Steven's gonna figure out the Diamond Command doesn't work on her anymore.

But that day was not today. Today, she had her free will and she was fully intended to use it.

_If ya don't care what I do, my Diamond, you wouldn't mind if I leave._

She knelt next to the bed and hit the floor several times, following a specific tune. A small window opened on the floor and a few pebbles came out of it.

"Open the door for me, guys."

The pebbles smiles to each other and went back inside the floor, closing the opening.

A few seconds later, a door opened high on the wall above the bed. It was high enough to reach the ceiling.

Spinel hesitated for a moment and looked at the wall Steven had disappeared into. She could wait for him… She could sit on the bed and count numbers until he came back, with a better mood, ready to pay her attention. At the same time, she noticed the Rose Quartz figurine was still in her hand.

She opened her vest and hid the toy in her gem, ready to not see it again. No waiting. She had waited for someone else before, and she was no up for doing it again.

Without a second thought, she made her legs into a spring and launched herself up. She grabbed the edge of the hallway and climbed inside. The door closed behind her.

* * *

Moving through Homeworld unseen was an art. A _craft_, if you will. It took practice. The whole planet was on constant alert; always moving in unison, like a single organism with millions of cells. There were guards at every door and hidden cameras in every corner, watching for anything out of the program. Any and every move was recorded.

It was by no means impossible, it was just hard. And for Spinel, who knew all the blind spots and who could make kilometric jumps and stretch herself so thin she could get into impossible back alleys, it was almost _easy_.

The window opened outside Pink Palace's roof and Spinel dropped to the abyss. She felt several meters until she passed a nearby bridge and extended her arms to grab the underside beams, then she slingshot herself forward and dropped herself on a lonely platform on a camera's blind spot. Once she hit solid ground, it was just a matter to sticking to the walls, going into the back alleys, staying out of sight of the cameras and guards, and making a jump to the lower floor when walking was impossible.

Finally, she dodged a patrolling group of topazes and went inside an old vent. She slithered between the steel walls, like a snake in her den, and when she reached the end she jumped, dropping to a seemingly endless fall.

The clean neo-steel Capital City was now above her and getting farther each second, as Spinel plummeted down to the barren landscape that was the Undercity; fifteen thousand kilometers of grey soil, impossibly deep tunnels, and holes. Millions of holes, only centimeters apart from each other. Gem holes, all of them.

That was why they didn't make gems in Homeworld anymore. Nothing alive could grow there, organic or gem.

Spinel didn't let the depressing view get thought her; she was too focused on the task of being a bird in dive. Once she was close enough to the ground to fear for her life, she held onto a pillar and spun around it time and time again until all the kinetic energy left her body and she reached a halt. She was, also, entangled around the pillar, but she quickly loosed herself and landed on solid ground.

From there, it was a two minute walk to the meeting point.

Spinel climbed to the top of a marble ledge, which ended in a white door. An old maintenance entrance, long forgotten and covered in so much dirt it was hard to see. She clapped two times and then knocked, once. She waited, shaking with anticipation.

A blinding light shined at her feet and grew around her like a bubble. Once inside, the world around her moved and trembled. She heard dirt being moved away and the clanking of metal, but she could see none of that. Her own image was looking back at her from the reflective surface of the sphere. She tried to stand as tall and regal as possible, instead of her usual hunched over, feet-dragging messy self.

The bubble came to a halt and dematerialized around her.

It didn't matter how many times she came to White's Palace, her throne room was always intimidating. Pristine clean and made of pure-white synthetic marble, the dome-shaped room appeared to be one single piece, with no discernible tiles, walls or pillars. At the centre of the room stood a multiple level tower —a _ziggurat_, Spinel thought it was called—, and at the top of it was White's Throne.

White, as usual, was not on it.

"_Ah_, Spinel. Please come in, dear," said White Pearl, but the voice coming from her wasn't her own. She was just the receptacle of White's will

She was standing on the throne, her body making a perfect holding-the-sky pose.

Spinel walked forward, never breaking her posture. She felt a tingling sensation on her feet, which meant the outside dust she had carried with her was being sucked by the floor. She stopped at the base of the spire and made a salute.

"My Diamond."

"Hello child. Don't bother with your report, I already know your mission went well, and I am most pleased with the results," said White, casting a plastic smile on the pearl's face. "Tell me though; is Pink currently in her room?"

Spinel bit her tongue. _His name is Steven, you ol' hag…_

"Yea, he is. Won't be coming out for-"

"Good, good," interrupted White.

Spinel never knew if she did that just to be rude, or… No, that's just silly. White could _not_ read her mind. If she did, Spinel would have been shattered years ago.

"Just for curiosity sake, how did you approach the problem? Did you disguise yourself as Pink again?"

Spinel shook her head and focused the light of her gem into shifting her vocal chords.

"No, only his voice," she said, with Steven's voice. "I stole his communicator and gave the general new instructions."

"Any chance someone could track the signal back to you?"

"Slim or none, I used an encrypted channel instead of the Diamond's one. 'For safety reasons', ya know?" she went back to her usual voice. "Heh, when the Jasper general heard her Diamond's voice, she didn't even question it."

"Of course not. Why would she? In any case, you have outdone yourself this time, Spinel. Not only you foiled Pink's mission, breaking Yellow's trust in her, you have done so with minimal gem loses. Good job!"

The warm in Spinel's chest was troubling. On one hand, there was a coding in her gem; a programmed desire to please the Diamonds —her own Diamond first, and the others after—, and that included White.

On the other hand, there was something irremediably _wrong_ in that creature. It made all the praise felt sore in Spinel's mouth.

"T-thank you, my Diamond."

"Alright. You are dismissed, then."

Spinel didn't move. She looked up to White Pearl's face. Her left side was horribly mangled; her eye was a stump crossed by a long crack. Was there even someone inside that head? Or was it just White, now?

"Is there anything else?"

Spinel felt the need to hug herself, but she managed to put herself together enough to talk:

"I… I was just wonderin'… H-how long are we gonna do this?"

"This?" said White, "What do you mean by _this_?"

"This! This… farce!" shouted Spinel. "We are lying to Steven, we manipulate him, we are setting him against Blue and Yellow and I… I don't want to play anymore."

"Play?" White laugh was like the cracking of a broken machine. "And here I thought you were actually worth something. I had believed you knew this was for the best," her tone was one of reprimand. "Pink cannot have a colony, Spinel. Not a new one, nor her former one."

"But he is suffering!"

"Suffering? You mean how Yellow suffered when she was tasked with taking care of the Empire, without all the resources that Pink's colony was supposed to provide? Or perhaps you mean how Blue suffered, when she cried for days on end and searched the universe for every single treasure that Pink left behind before her… 'Shattering'"

The word ringed across the empty room, filled with the cold hate of White's voice.

Spinel gave in and hugged herself. Despite how Pink had abandoned her, she was devastated too when she heard of her shattering. The known story went that a war broke down on Pink's colony, eons ago. Pink was attacked and shattered on her planet, seemingly disappearing forever. Until one day, 4000 years later, a gem-collector robonoid was sent to Pink's colony to investigate if there were still renegade gems there.

The robonoid came back with an organic infant. On his belly, there was Pink Diamond's gemstone; on his wrist, a tag with a name.

STEVEN.

According to the Diamonds, Pink had faked her shattering and buried her gem into the body of a human, giving him her powers and hiding her presence and memories, as if she had never existed, all in an effort to run away from her duty as a Diamond.

Spinel had a different theory. When they were together, Pink taught Spinel all about organic life; about trees, plants and the like, and how to care for them. The lesson about seeds stuck particularly strong on her mind. If a seed felt from a tree and landed on fertile soil, a new tree would grow. Similar to the original, but never the same.

For Spinel, Steven was Pink's seed. For the Diamonds, he was Pink in disguise, hiding inside a flesh puppet —not unlike what White was doing to her pearl.

As for Steven himself, he was torn apart between both theories.

"But through suffering, we learn. And Pink will learn, even if it breaks her," said White, emotionless. "That's all I want for her. What do you want, Spinel?"

Spinel shuddered. That question was a trap. _What did she want? _For her life to be as it is now, but better, to begin with. She wanted to be by Steven's side, to be his companion, his friend and confident. To make him smile and laugh so much he would cry. He wanted him to be the gem he is supposed to be, his own master. A full grown tree, with no trace of Pink in it.

But as long as they were in Homeworld, as long as there were gems and other Diamonds around, Steven will _always_ want a colony.

And Spinel could not allow that to happen.

"I want Steven to be happy," she said with confidence. "There is nothing else in my mind. It's what I was made for."

"Then you must understand that Pink could never, _ever_, have a colony, until she had made up for all the suffering she has caused… everyone."

There was an odd movement in White Pearl's face; a flash of something furious and deep, but it banished so fast Spinel might as well imagined it.

"I agree."

"Good! We are on the same page then," said White, back to her cheery self. "And being that the case, I see no reason why this conversation must continue."

"But I-"

The light enveloped Spinel, and before she could make a move, she was in the bubble again, staring at her own shocked reflection. When White spoke, her voice seemed to come from all corners at the same time.

"**See you very soon, dear.**"

The bubble moved again, going through metal and soil, and when it opened, Spinel was on the ledge, outside of White's Palace, staring at the old forgotten maintenance door.

_Well, that went swell._

Suddenly she felt very empty, as the future she wanted for her and Steven felt farthest than ever.

_Fuck this. Fuck this all…_

Spinel made her legs into a spring and shooted herself up, grabbing onto the pillars and climbing the walls to reach Capital City.

* * *

Once the pebbles said it was safe to come out, they opened the secret door to Steven's room. Spinel peeked inside; a whole lot of noise was coming from Steven's office, now that the arc was open.

"Thanks again, guys," said Spinel to the pebbles.

They were sitting on top of the cogs inside the walls as if they were little chairs. _You are welcome, Spin_ they said, and went through a pebble-sized door, disappearing from sight.

Spinel grabbed the edge of the platform and stretched her arms, slowly descending her body down. She hit the floor with the noise of a bee sitting on a flower.

"It's that you, Spinel?" came Steven's voice from inside the office.

_Damn it, how does he do _that_? _Spinel reeled her arms back in shape. The window above her closed shut.

"Uh, yeah, it's a-me. Your ol' best friend Spinel."

"Come in here."

She gulped —it was a learnt gesture, since she had no spit to swallow— and followed his voice.

Steven's office was well hidden; a secret even to the Diamonds. His own private room to work, think, rest, or simply pretend the outside world didn't exist.

The room itself was mostly empty void; an abyss of cogs and machinery that the pebbles used to move around and construct everything in the Palace. 'A place between the walls of space-time', Steven has described it, and the way Spinel understood it, it existed in a different dimension of sorts.

The constructed part of the room consisted of a long platform, surrounded by stairs at all sides which connected it with the other floors.

The floors above were the hydroponic gardens, created to fulfill Steven's organic need for externally provided nutrients and sugars. Spinel herself had planted most of the trees, bushes and flowers over there —with imported soil— and she had the task of taking care of them.

She hasn't done so today, but it has been a weird day.

The main platform itself was less impressive, simply a long plank which ended in another circular platform. Pink's vanity used to be here, but Steven had it removed and moved to the main chamber. There was nothing there that the Diamonds couldn't see, but there was plenty _here_ that had to remain a secret.

Spinel walked to the end of the platform. There was a sofa and a chair with a holographic panel —now turned off— in it. There was also a table littered with papers and trash. At the centre there was a pedestal with a diamond shaped panel; a personal workstation —also turned off— that they had assembled from scratch. Recently —and in no small thanks to Spinel sneaking skills—, they had hijacked the Diamond's network, so Steven liked to come here to check the Diamond's secret reports, watch the video of Homeworld's cameras or, simply, to study the Diamond's old logs.

This is also where Spinel had sent that stupid, cruel, new order to the Jasper general. She imagined the faces of the amethyst soldiers, as they were caught in the scorching fire of the laser turrets.

"Spinel! Where are you?"

Steven's voice got Spinel out of her spiral. She peeped over the edge and saw the shape of Steven on the lower level.

"I am over here!" she shouted.

"Well, bring your butt _down_ here, genius. I have to something to tell you," was Steven's response.

Spinel's heart shrunk down. _Why do I bother with this rockhead? He doesn't even like me._

She repeated her trick from before; she grabbed onto the edge and stretched her arms, sending her body down until she touched solid ground. Then she reeled her arms back in.

The lower level was the workshop; just a pair of long square plank surrounding an equally long dock like platform, which was home of one single ship, suspended a meter above ground and held in place by long carbon-silk wire rope —the same material Spinel's body is made of, absurdly enough.

Spinel smiled when she saw the ship in question. The 'Sun Chaser' they had called it; a simple one-pilot stealth fighter, era 2 technology, now modified to have two seats. They had found it years ago, in one of their unauthorized escapades through Homeworld. It was a pain to transport, and an even bigger pain to get inside the Palace unseen.

But it has paid off. It was Steven's more important project. The ship, along with the net hijack, and the whole 'between-the-walls' room were so well hidden they were a secret even to White.

Unless, of course, Spinel was right and White could read her mind. In which case, _fuck you White_.

The motor of the ship has been removed and was laying on the platform, partly dissembled. There were, however, two cute legs in hearts pajama pants coming from under the chassis. Judging by the clanking sound coming, Steven was struggling with something.

His hand patted the floor, searching for something. Spinel picked the nearest wrench and deposited it in his hands. The hand went back under the chassis but came out instantly.

"No, this is a 5 ½, I need a 6," said Steven.

Spinel looked around and grabbed another wrench, similar but bigger to the first one.

"This one?"

Steven's grabbed the new wrench and sighed. "Yea, that one. Thanks."

"Yer welcome."

Without anything else to add, Steven went back to whatever he was doing down there. Spinel sat down and watched him work; unscrewing screws, unbolting bolts, dissembling whatever he deemed had not a place in _their_ ship and discarding it. Finally there was a loud CLANK and a long relieved breath.

"Finally!"

He came out from under the machine; Spinel crawled aside to give him space. She chuckled. Steven's face was all covered in oil spats and sweat, and his shirt was even muddier. He was holding a dirty spherical object with a broken glass on top.

"Is that-?"

"The fighter's stealth-device, yes. Its busted," he sighed, "and I don't think fixing it is worth the effort."

He sent it rolling across the floor until it hit the motor and stopped.

"The one you brought last week, on the other hand…"

Steven checked inside his toolbox and produced another device. It was identical to the other, except cleaner, made of a brighter, golden material and with an intact glass.

"This one is perfect. When did you say you found it?"

"Yellow's armory," said Spinel.

"Ah…" said Steven, with a thoughtful look. "Any chance they'll find out?"

"Nah, I covered my steps."

'Covered my steps' in this case meant that Spinel stole a few other unimportant pieces and hid them in a reconnaissance ship.

It'll take the prosecutors zircons a few days to interrogate the whole crew, and by the time they found none of them had any idea how that stuff got there, nobody would care anymore.

"Good," was Steven's only answer.

They were quiet for a while; Steven was cleaning his hands and face with a piece of rag, while Spinel tapped on her knees and tried to not burst out of her own form.

_Should I say somethin'?_ She pondered. _He said he wanted to tell me somethin', but he is bein' all tight-lipped now. Ugh, why are you so difficult! You want to punish me, shatter me, or send me back into the garden… just say it to my face!_

When Spinel couldn't control her tremors anymore, she spoke:

"Ste-MMH!

Steven's lips hit against hers so hard she felt on the ground with him on top. She closed her eyes, lost to the sensations. The warm of his breath, the humidity of his tongue, the weight of his body on top of hers. His hands, so strong but so soft, caressing her back, holding her tight, scratching over the clothing. _Pain_. His teeth biting her lips, and then going for her neck. Her whole body tied around his, not wanting to ever, _ever_ let go.

"Ste-"

"**_Shh_, quiet. Don't say anything**," was his command.

Now, Spinel could defy him… But why would she ever want to do that?

Steven bit her neck, hard. Time and time again, here and there. He moved her jacket a bit to reach her shoulder and cover it with kisses and bite marks. Spinel was a moaning mess.

_Don't stop, please never stop…_

But Steven did stop. He grabbed her vest by the chest and, with one swift motion, he opened it, sending most of the buttons flying away. Spinel blushed and looked at the ship, averting his gaze.

She had started to wear clothes a while ago, in a gesture of solidarity with Steven. He was the only other gem that ever wore them, after all. Also, the garments covered her new 'human inspired' form, in which she has perma-shifted to fit Steven's desires.

Not that Spinel would care about that. Gems had no concept of nudity; she could walk around the palace and no-one would blink an eye.

No, the thing that mortified her was her _gemstone_. Her spinel, once a heart, now inverted into a spade, was the most vulnerable part of hers. Her true self. Her 'body' was just a manifestation of her mind; how she wanted to look like —or how she _felt_ she should look like.

Seeing her gemstone was a reminder of who she _really_ was, the things she had done… And the gem she left behind.

This is why she always hid it, and that made the gems around uneasy. It was abnormal to not show your gemstone to the world.

_Just another thing that makes me a freak…_

Steven, unaware of the existential debate inside Spinel, left a trail of bite marks from her neck to her gemstone, and when she reached it, he kissed it. _Oh, Stars and Light. _The gem shined as Spinel felt the familiar warm spread through all her form.

Another one of Steven's gifts: the power to heal and give life. His saliva, his blood, his tears, his… well, every fluid his body produced was a fountain of life, and it could heal organics and gems alike.

The appealing part was that, if the gem in question had no damage that needed fixing —which was Spinel's case—, the healing energy would spread through a gem's form, causing an immense, uncontrollable _bliss_.

It was like being tickled all over, like laughing so much you feel you are about to poof. Like seeing your best friend again, after an eternity spent in darkness.

Steven didn't stop there, though; he kissed and licked Spinel's gemstone with perverse pleasure, sending waves of energy through the entire gem's form. Spinel was shaking; each wave of pleasure stronger than the last one. The energy of her gemstone was overwhelming now, and she didn't know if she was going to poof or just come. Either way, she waited the moment with eagerness.

She felt Steven's hands on his skin, and she thought he would strip her completely or indulge into his basest instinct and grab her breast. Instead, he grabbed the vest and closed it, buttoning it to the best of his capacity and hiding Spinel's chest permanently. When she came back from her euphoria, she looked up at her Diamond.

_Oh,_ that was a smug smile if she had ever seen one.

"You feeling…" said Steven and cleared his throat. His voice was hoarse and _delicious_. "Are you feeling good down there?"

"Yea…" said Spinel. She was sure she was making love-doll eyes, but she didn't give a fuck. "Message received."

"Mmh? Oh no, that's not what I wanted to say."

Steven stood up and extended her hand to her. Spinel didn't miss the badly hidden hardness under his pants.

"Are you sure?" Spinel chuckled. "Cause I think I heard somethin' back there, but I might need you to repeat it."

Steven closed and opened his hand a few times. Finally, Spinel grabbed it and he pulled her up. He fixed her loosened vest and jacket. It was clear he had no intention of going further now.

"What I wanted to say was… Thank you."

Spinel tilted her head to the side. "Uh… Yer welcome? W-why are you thankin' me for, tho?"

"Well… Your honesty, for once. Don't get me wrong, I don't _like_ the way you speak your mind," his grip tightened around her shoulder, "but I know why you do it, and I appreciate that you tell me the truth. Not many gems around here do that. But more importantly, I am grateful for your loyalty."

Steven's held his hand at Spinel's cheek. She —as per tradition says— leaned against it.

"Heh, that's… that's nothing, really," she said. "You have a helluva lotta gems that are loyal to bits to you."

Steven scoffed. "Yeah, only when it's convenient for _them_. You think those two jerks guarding the door wouldn't snitch me to Yellow if they saw me sneak out? O-or what about that jasper general? She messed up my orders and then she said I… What? Changed them at last minute?"

Spinel was quiet. Too quiet. _Say something smart, ya fool!_

"Heh, what a rat, uh?" she said stupidly.

"More like 'What _a sole licker'_. She just wanted to be on Yellow's good grace and she threw me into the Void for that," Steven huffed. "Did my mom have to deal with such parasites back there?"

"Oh yea! Yea, you, _huff_, you have no idea, mistah! The gems around here, what do I tell ya? Leeches, the whole of 'em."

Steven's hand caressed her cheek. "Not the whole of them, no."

Spinel closed her eyes shut. She couldn't look at him now.

"You were right back there, when you said you have done everything for me. It was true!" cheered Steven. "You… You have served me like a Pearl, fought my battles like a quartz soldier, sneaked around and spied like a Citrine, stood by my side like a Topaz or Carnelian-"

"Y-you're really making mountains outta molehills about me," Spinel tried to step back, but Steven grabbed her hand.

"What I mean is… You didn't have to do any of that, but you did! Anyone else would have rather denied my orders than breaking their assigned roles. Or worse, they would have tried and failed. But you have done everything I asked with no question."

Steven tapped his chin. "I mean, you _do_ protest a lot but you do the stuff anyway."

Spinel eyes were fixed on the ground. Steven tilted her head up with a finger. The tremors came back to her. His eyes were burning, not with rage, but with _light_. There was pink in them, sure, but also yellow, blue, white, and multitudes of other colors Spinel had no name for and didn't even know existed until now.

"**Spinel**," Steven said, but his voice went right through Spinel's gemstone without even touching her form. "**I can't change who I am. I'm a Diamond,**" his voice faltered for a second, "**A bit 'out of the mold', yes, but still a Diamond. And you are an out of the mold gem. The perfect gem for someone like me. And I have never regretted the day I stepped into your garden**."

The light was so strong it was blinding. The colors danced around Spinel's vision and it was too much. She threw herself in Steven's arms. This is better. This she get it. What was underneath, what Steven really was under all that flesh… she could not understand it.

"I-It's what I do" she said, as tears rolled down her eyes. "Y-you are my Diamond."

"Ah-ha," said Steven, now in his normal voice. "And you are my Spinel."

Spinel didn't mean to laugh but she did. She was happy now. And sad. And guilty. But she could put all of that behind her because Steven was _happy_ and he was _glad_ to have her.

That's all that mattered.

They split apart and, just like before, Steven took out his hankie and cleaned her face. He was kind and gentle, like the boy he used to be. Sure, he was fouler in language and mood now, but deep down, he was still the kid that cried tears of joy when she saw her because 'you are pink like me!'

He had grown up, and so has Spinel. They had grown up together.

"Oh, would you stop crying you big gem baby?" said Steven playfully as he put the hankie in his pocket and walked away. "We had a lot of stuff to do."

Spinel sniffed. "We do?"

"Oh yea! Hear this out."

And so he explained that, while she was out, he had hacked Yellow's computer remotely and had read her recent logs. And he found one interesting piece of Intel; one week from now, Yellow was gonna leave to _Vergonha 7_, to do some damage control on the colony. And Blue was about to leave to her own sector around the same time.

"I imagine they won't be out for long. Two weeks, a month tops. Now," he dug into his other pocked and took out a piece of paper, "this here is a map of the colony of_ Ur 3_, in a nearby sector."

He unfolded the map on the floor. Both he and Spinel sat around it. The map was well detailed and showed the most important parts of the planet; the kindergartens, spires and such.

"There are confirmed rebel bases. Here, here and here. But they have spies all around the planet, so we have no idea who is still loyal to the Empire. So, I think an investigation is due."

Spinel gave Steven a confused look.

"Don't you see? This is my chance! The Sun Chaser stealth device is working already. It can take us there! If we help the loyalists fight off the rebels, I could show my initiative to Yellow, Blue and White. Sure, it won't guarantee they'll give me a colony, but it's a first step and… what's with that face now?"

Spinel's gem was burning. After all that happened today, the last thing she wanted to hear about was a _fucking_ colony.

_He'll never stop. As long as we are here, as long as he has a chance, he'll always want a colony._

A smile took over her face as the realization sunk in.

_Gonna have to burn that bridge for you._

Spinel looked at the map for a few seconds, in front of a flabbergasted Steven.

"Here," she pointed at the map.

"Base 13C? It's a big one, they had most of the weapons and vehicles of the planet, but they are still loyal," said Steven and his eyes opened wide. "Or that's what they say to hide the fact that they are NOT loyal!

"Maybe… Maybe not. But I know that the base is at the shadow of this mountain. We can fly there, land the Sun Chaser on the other side of the mountain and spy on the base. If they are still good gems, we join in and offer to do the nasty job for them." Spinel let out a twisted smile. "And if _they_ are the nasty gems, well, we just gotta put a _wittle_ bit of that sweet concentrated rocket fuel at the base of the mountain, torch it up and BOOM!"

She made a grand hand motion. "Goodbye rebels! Hope you like to bathe in snow and rocks! Then we just contact one of the other loyal bases and tell them to take over the 13C. The other D's are out, but Steven Diamond is here, baby!

Steven's smile was slow to appear but fast to grow. He clapped and cheered like a kid who just heard a great joke.

"That's a great plan Spinel!" he said and his voice turned smug. "Will you ever cease to impress me?"

Spinel made a dismissive hand motion. "Psst, what do I tell ya? I'm a gem of many talents!"

"Sure you are."

Steven folded the map back and stood up.

"Alright then, we have a plan, but we have a lot to do," he said and pointed at the ship. "The stealth device is ready and the thrusters work. Not that they gonna do any good with that busted motor. We should leave as soon as possible —once Blue and Yellow leave first, of course—, which means we have one week to fix the motor, put the Sun Chaser together, order the pebbles to open an hangar door, get the required fuel and explosives AND think of on a excuse to retire into my room for weeks with none of the wiser."

Steven stopped talking to breathe in. He was already sweating. "Just one week… Oh, there is _so much_ to do…"

A pair of hands grabbed him, as Spinel pressed against his back.

"Whaaaat, does that mean that your plan was to get me all weak in da knees and then not give me sum?" she said in a temptress voice.

Steven shuddered. "Yeah well... Serves you right for calling me a joke."

"_But Steevieee_…"

"Hey," Steven turned his head around to peck Spinel's lips. The momentarily distracted gem loosened her grasp. "Why don't you go and get us some dinner? And some caffeine pills, cause we are not sleeping today."

"I never sleep."

"Yeah I…" Steven blushed and hit her in the arm. "Stop being a wiseguy and do it, you goof."

"Hehe, your wish is my command, my Diamond," Spinel made a salute.

Steven rolled his eyes but there was a big smile on his face. He gave his back to Spinel and knelt down next to the motor. He was already mumbling to himself about the valves he'll need to replace.

As for Spinel, she was already planning how to ruin the whole operation. She'll help building the ship, that's part of her plan; but the colony part will need a little sabotage. Maybe she could meddle with the explosive so it won't blow up, or contact the rebels from a private channel and inform them of the weakness in the base defenses…

She shook her head. There was plenty of time to think on how to ruin this operation. For now, she just wanted to think of Steven and the nice trip they had ahead for them.

At one moment she remembered something and reached for her gem. She took of the rose quartz figurine. Suddenly, it didn't look as pretty or important.

_Bah, fuck it. _The other Diamonds could keep all the stupid gems for themselves if they wanted. Steven didn't need them, he had Spinel.

And alternately, Spinel didn't need the other Diamonds. The gems can kneel down to White as much as they wanted; but for her, Steven was the only star she would look for at night. The only horizon she would search for. Her only Light.

And she knew they'll be together one day, even if it means breaking his heart now. She will destroy any and all chances of him proving himself to the Diamonds. She will make him look so bad in her eyes that, eventually, they'll just decide he is just not worth the effort. They'll order him to stay in his room permanently or, even better, they will exile him.

Exile! What a beautiful idea! Steven could never return to Homeworld. He'll be a pariah, an outcast. _Off color_.

But Spinel would be there for him. They'll take the Sun Chaser to an inhabited planet, preferably one with organic life Steven could feed on. They'll make a house there, build a small kingdom. An Empire of two. Steven will learn to love himself as he his, not as **Her** shadow.

And one day, he'll realize that the whole colony thing was a stupid idea to begin with.

That was the plan. That was _her_ plan. And no-one, not even Yellow, Blue or White will get in her way. Spinel will make Steven happy, either he wants it or not.

CRACK.

Spinel looked up at Steven. He was still distracted with the motor, meaning he hasn't heard that. She opened her hand. The rose quartz figure was broken in pieces. This brought Spinel a joy she couldn't describe.

* * *

It was deep in the morning when a gem appeared at Pink's chambers. Naggy and Dummy stood up in alert.

"Halt, who lives?" said Dummy.

"Which one of you is Carnelian Facet-3 Cut 2ZL?"

"That gem is me. What do you want?" said Naggy.

"I am here to relieve you of your duties."

The two carnelians looked at each other and exploded in laugh.

"Ok, alright," said Naggy, "but I am gonna need a little more confirmation than-"

The gem raised her hand, showing her diamond-shaped computer. She pressed the button and a holographic pad appeared, showing Yellow's instructions.

Naggy read it all and her shoulders slouched. She looked at her partner. Dummy was as confused as her, or more.

"Good luck," said Naggy as she unsummoned her giant axe.

She took off with no other word.

The gem took Naggy's spot and summoned her helmet. She stood there, arms crossed, with the hardest face Dummy has seen. But there was something more on her.

"So, uh…" Dummy began, but her tongue was twisted. It was her face; something about the gemstone on her nose. "I… I didn't know they assigned jaspers to guard duty…"

"The joys of Era 3."

Dummy nodded and kept staring at her.

"Ey, I am sorry to ask but, have we met before?"

"Unlikely. Our roles must have taken us to different places."

"Heh, yea? What did you used to do?"

That was the wrong thing to ask, for Jasper huffed and tensed.

"I used to be a General."

* * *

**Ta dah...**

**Ok, i'll admit it: this fic was mostly worldbuilding than Stevnel, and i am sorry for that.**

**This is an AU which i have been thinking about for some time, but now that the show is ending, i dont think it'll ever see the light of the day. So i tried to cram as much of my ideas of that AU into this little thing. Thus, the lenght.**

**I hope you didn't feel too dissapointed. In the end, i love the result, and i hope you liked it too!**

**As usual, do no forget to Comment and tell me what you thought!**

**See ya!**


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